When creating a computer program, errors in the code can introduce bugs to the software. Similarly, errors in our body’s genetic code, DNA, which is stored in structures known as chromosomes, can bring about mutations in the body.
A new method than enables researchers to dial up or tone down the amount of a certain metastatic protein inhibitor (BACH1) within a cell could provide a new path in cancer research that reassesses the effectiveness of protein inhibitors to treat disease.
The discovery suggests that one possible approach to treat glioblastoma would be a therapy that targets the metabolic process in patients who have that genetic alteration.
A new tool which could help reduce the spread of antimicrobial resistance is showing early promise, through exploiting a bacterial immune system as a gene editing tool.
Colorectal cancer is one of the most common types of cancer worldwide. In over half of all cases, an important protective mechanism in cells is inactivated by mutations – the tumor suppressor gene p53.
A study published by MBARI researchers and their collaborators today in Nature provides new insights about one of the earliest points in animal evolution that happened more than 700 million years ago.
A cleft lip or palate arises from the combined effects of genes and inflammatory risk factors experienced during pregnancy, such as smoking or infections, finds a new study led by UCL researchers.
People with a genetic predisposition for Alzheimer’s disease may have an increased risk of epilepsy and people with a certain type of epilepsy may have an increased risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, according to a study published in the May 24, 2023, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Scientists at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital studied how the epigenetic landscape influences the binding of pioneer transcription factors, affecting access to DNA.
Read about how Scientists at St. Jude determined how the SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complex helps cancer cells remember how to be cancerous after division.
The biology underpinning a rare genetic mutation that allows its carrier to live virtually pain-free, heal more rapidly and experience reduced anxiety and fear, has been uncovered by new research from UCL.
University of Delaware researchers in the lab of Aditya Kunjapur, assistant professor in the College of Engineering’s Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, have engineered bacteria to synthesize an amino acid that contains a rare functional group that others have shown to have implications in the regulation of our immune system. The researchers also taught a single bacterial strain to create the amino acid and place it at specific sites within target proteins.
From advancing artificial intelligence to strengthening our national security, the 2023 Hertz Fellows will address the most pressing challenges facing our nation.
UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have identified hundreds of genomic variants associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in East African families who have a markedly higher prevalence of the neurodevelopmental condition than other populations worldwide. The study, published in Cell Genomics, is the first to investigate the genetics of ASD in an African population, an important step toward decreasing racial and ethnic health disparities for this condition, the authors said.
Neurons in a key area of the brain have different functions based on their exact genetic identity, and understanding this diversity could lead to better understanding of the brain’s computational flexibility and memory capacity, potentially informing disease treatment options, Cornell researchers report in a new study.
In a new study published in eLife, lead author Carolyn Elya, postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard, reveals the molecular and cellular underpinnings behind the parasitic fungus, Entomophthora muscae’s (E. muscae), ability to manipulate the behavior of fruit flies.
A team of researchers have discovered that a mutation in a ribosomal protein found specifically in heart and skeletal muscle leads to impaired cardiac contractility in mice.
Biologists have used machine learning, a type of AI, to identify “synthetic extreme” DNA sequences with specifically designed functions in gene activation. They tested 50 million DNA sequences and found synthetic DNA sequences with activities that could be useful in biotechnology and medicine.
Cairns joins renowned scientists as part of the Royal Society, known for its significant role in many scientific discoveries. Cairns is the second current faculty member elected at the U.
Since Michigan is the nation's leading producer of tart cherries, Michigan State University researchers were searching for the genes associated with tart cherry trees that bloom later in the season to meet the needs of a changing climate. They started by comparing DNA sequences from late-blooming tart cherry trees to the sequenced genome of a related species, the peach. However, in a surprise to the researcher, the genetic discrepancies between the species outweighed the similarities. This led the team to create the first annotated Montmorency tart cherry genome and identify the DNA segments that code for each gene.
Stony Brook University will honor the life and legacy of eminent paleoanthropologist, conservationist and politician Richard E. Leakey by hosting “Africa: The Human Cradle: An International Conference Paying Tribute to Richard E. Leakey” from June 5 - 9, 2023 at the university’s Charles B. Wang Center. The Turkana Basin Institute (TBI) and Stony Brook are hosting the conference, in partnership with the National Geographic Society. Thought leaders from around the world will celebrate the immeasurable, life-long contributions by Leakey to furthering the appreciation of Africa’s centrality in the narrative of human evolution.
DNA is well known as the blueprint of life, necessary for an organism to facilitate living processes. DNA can be damaged by various factors such as radical metabolites, radiation, and some toxic chemicals.
Molecular clocks in our cells synchronize our bodies with the cycle of night and day, cue us for sleep and waking, and drive daily cycles in virtually every aspect of our physiology. Scientists studying the molecular mechanisms of our biological clocks have now identified a key event that controls the timing of the clock.
The Association for Molecular Pathology (AMP) has published a report that was designed to establish recommendations for standardizing orthogonal confirmation practices for germline variants detected by next-generation sequencing (NGS) in The Journal of Molecular Diagnostics.
Investigadores de Cedars-Sinai han identificado una variante genética que aumenta el riesgo de las personas de desarrollar la enfermedad de Crohn perianal, la manifestación más debilitante de la enfermedad de Crohn.
Polygenic scores – estimates of an individual’s predisposition for complex traits and diseases – hold promise for identifying patients at risk of disease and guiding early, personalized treatments, but UCLA experts found the scores fail to account for the wide range of genetic diversity across individuals in all ancestries.
Two researchers from the University of Geneva (UNIGE) have discovered how to permanently transform the scales that normally cover the feet of chickens into feathers, by specificially modifying the expression of certain genes.
Researchers at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) have developed a computational platform capable of discovering tumor antigens derived from alternative RNA splicing, expanding the pool of cancer immunotherapy targets. The tool, called “Isoform peptides from RNA splicing for Immunotherapy target Screening” (IRIS), was described in a paper published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
At a glance:
Researchers trace the origin of certain breast cancers to genomic reshuffling — rearrangement of chromosomes — that activates cancer genes and ignites disease.
The finding offers a long-missing explanation for many cases of the disease that remain unexplained by the classical model of breast cancer development.
The study shows the sex hormone estrogen — thus far thought to be only a fuel for breast cancer growth — can directly cause tumor-driving genomic rearrangements.
A new type of developmental disability caused by mutations in a gene known as CBX1 has been discovered by a UT Southwestern Medical Center researcher and his colleagues. The findings, reported in Genetics in Medicine, an official journal of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG), offer insight into the role this gene plays in development and could eventually lead to therapies for a range of related disorders.
Proteins are large, complex molecules that play many critical roles in the body and are produced following the instructions encoded in DNA. By reading their DNA letters, cells produce an intermediate RNA molecule that will give rise to the corresponding protein. Most diseases occur with altered protein levels, which are either a cause or consequence of the condition itself. RNA plays a pivotal role in diseases with altered protein levels by serving as the intermediary messenger between DNA and protein.
How do our brains become capable of creating specific memories? In one of the first preclinical studies to examine memory development in youth, a research team at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) may have identified a molecular cause for memory changes in early childhood.
An international team, led by Macquarie University researchers Dr. Ram Maharjan and Associate Professor Amy Cain, have discovered how the superbug can survive harsh environments and then rebound, causing deadly infections. They have found a single protein that acts as a master regulator.
The spread of drug-resistant microbes has become a global health concern that threatens our ability to treat infections. The widespread use of antimicrobials in livestock, such as swine farms, exacerbates this problem.
Skin cancer is the most prevalent form of cancer in the United States, with over 5 million cases diagnosed annually. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that melanoma alone accounts for more than 8,000 deaths each year. Thankfully, skin cancer is highly preventable, making it crucial to prioritize protection. Below are some of the latest headlines in the Dermatology channel.
Researchers from the Gene Therapy Program (GTP) at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania will present nine abstracts highlighting their translational science and discovery research on gene therapy, gene editing, and adeno-associated virus (AAV) vector technology at the American Society of Cell and Gene Therapy (ASGCT) 26th Annual Meeting on May 16–20, 2023 in Los Angeles, California.
Irregularities in the body’s genetic coding to make proteins are linked to cancerous tumors. But most genetic material contains elements whose function isn’t clear. Could abnormalities in non-coding material also impact a person’s health, or even be linked to cancers as well? A new study by researchers at the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine suggests that the non-coding genetic molecules also play a key role in health and disease, including tumor development.
More than 100 genes linked to the risk of schizophrenia seem to cause illness because of their role in the placenta rather than in the developing brain, according to a new study led by the Lieber Institute for Brain Development.
The Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM) will make history this month when the first bioprinted solid tissue constructs soar to the International Space Station (ISS) on board the next all private astronaut mission by commercial space leader Axiom Space.
Researchers from Sanford Burnham Prebys and the Chinese University of Hong Kong have developed a computational approach to predict whether a person with type 2 diabetes will develop kidney disease. The findings could help doctors prevent or better manage kidney disease in people with type 2 diabetes.
Gene editing is a powerful method for both research and therapy. Since the advent of the Nobel Prize-winning CRISPR/Cas9 technology, a quick and accurate tool for genome editing discovered in 2012, scientists have been working to explore its capabilities and boost its performance.
In a new study they propose that ancestors of Prochlorococcus acquired an ability to latch onto chitin — the degraded particles of ancient exoskeletons. The microbes hitched a ride on passing flakes, using the particles as rafts to venture further out to sea. These chitin rafts may have also provided essential nutrients, fueling and sustaining the microbes along their journey.
Investigators at Cedars-Sinai Cancer found that fatty liver, a condition closely associated with obesity, promotes the spread of colorectal cancer to the liver. Their study, published today in the peer-reviewed journal Cell Metabolism, details the process at the cellular level and could change the way doctors manage the disease in some patients.
As the northern hemisphere heads into summer, we may be in for a COVID-19 reprieve. Not because the pandemic is over; the Omicron subvariant ‘Arcturus’ is still creeping upward and causing new symptoms. But two new studies from the University of Illinois add evidence supporting a seasonal pattern in the behavior of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Van Andel Institute scientists have pinpointed how a specific gene mutation triggers an inflammatory cascade that may drive development of treatment-resistant cancers.